"ALF" 2008 Obituary

ALFANO o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.toronto_star 2008-03-12 published
ALFANO,
Francesco "
Frank"
Suddenly at home on Tuesday, March 11, 2008. Frank, beloved husband
of the late Emilia
RIZZO.
Loved father of Rose DE
NITTIS (Joe,)
Anthony (Gwen), Maria
CESARIO (Biagio), Angela
FEBBRARO (Carmelo),
Michael (Victoria), and Mario (Annamaria). He will be sadly missed
by many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Friends and family
will be received at the Lynett Funeral Home, 3299 Dundas St.
West (one block east of Runnymede) Wednesday 7-9 p.m. and Thursday
2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Funeral Mass on Friday, March 14, 2008 at 9: 45 a.m.,
at St. Francis of Assisi Church (Grace and Mansfield). Entombment
Holy Cross Cemetery. If desired, donations may be made to the
Heart and Stroke Foundation, or the Hospital for Sick Children.

ALFIERI o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2008-04-04 published
BATTISTA,
Franceschina (née
ALFIERI)
Mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, lifelong promoter of
family, study, work and worship. Born May 5, 1919, in Castropignano,
Italy. Died November 18, 2007, in Toronto of organ failure, aged
By Dolores DI
FELICE and Aldo DI
FELICE,
Page L6
At 5 feet tall, our grandmother was a giant in our lives.
Franceschina
ALFIERI was an only child raised by her mother and
grandparents. Her father, after whom she was named, had died
in the First World War six months before her birth. Franceschina
was taken out of school at a young age to work on the family
farm. Not being able to continue her education was Nonna's lifelong
regret.
At 16 she married Liberato
BATTISTA.
They had four children,
the youngest born in a field as the family took cover during
a Second World War bombing of their hilltop town.
In the early 1950s, Liberato immigrated to Toronto and the family
slowly followed, with Franceschina and their youngest daughter
arriving in 1960.
Almost 30 years ago our grandfather died. But Franceschina wasn't
one to give up. She insisted on living alone and took care of
her own affairs. She worked at a local factory making plastic
bags, one time badly breaking her arm when it caught in the machines.
But she stayed there for some 30 years, until the age of 68,
fiercely proud of that fact.
Franceschina could make her way around all of Toronto by bus.
Although never fluent, she knew more English than she let on
and never had problems communicating.
Her family meant everything to her. Anyone who visited her home
was overwhelmed by the many family photos on display. She was
not one to replace a picture. She simply made room for the new
ones. She adored her seven grandchildren and was overjoyed that
they all became university graduates. Our successes pleased her
to no end.
Franceschina believed in working hard. In the summer she toiled
in her vegetable garden and tended her fruit trees, and in the
winter she knitted blankets. Respect for others was essential.
She would counsel us with the Italian saying, "Il rispetto è
di quello que lo fa, non di quello che lo riceve," which roughly
translates into, "Respect belongs to the person who demonstrates
it, not the person who receives it." At social functions she
would pull you aside and ask whether you had paid your respects
to a certain person.
Franceschina gave with her whole heart, whether spoiling us with
endless gifts or scurrying around during a visit to offer food
and drinks.
Her youthful spirit stayed strong. But her body weakened and
she lost her lifelong independence during her final months. Just
a day before leaving us, she clutched her first grand_son close
to her, refusing to let go, and whispered a last lesson in Italian:
"Vogliatevi bene" - love each other.
Dolores and Aldo DI
FELICE are Franceschina's grandchildren.